King Nothing
by Gosan-Kinen Productions
Summary: Old government files are dug up from previous security breaches, Kurosaki Ichigo knows too much and Uzumaki Naruto could take over. So, what's the solution? Send these low-levelled agents on a possible deadly mission to capture them. :Warning: Yaoi Yuri:
1. Chapter 1

**KING NOTHING**

**PROLOGUE  
**

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_**Wish I may,  
Wish I might,  
Have this wish tonight.  
Are you satisfied?  
**_

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"It's been about a month since Akatsuki were all taken down, I want opinions of those that were involved," Danzo declared to start his meeting off. The last month saw the end of Akatsuki by some unlikely people and answers were needed.

At his authorititive voice, the council stilled, a hush falling over the entire dimly lit room. The shuffling of paper, rumbling of voices and chatter decreased until silence reigned, and then Homura spoke up and said, in a raspy voice, "Jiraiya and Tsunade would know something about it, but they left the United Kingdom years ago."

Danzo looked about, and turned towards everyone before looking towards Homura once again, his calm voice stating, "Well that's the problem then isn't it? Of course they'd know about those outsiders that took out Akatsuki, but we know next to nothing on them, they all disappeared a week after it happened..." he said with an impatient sigh. He knew things weren't looking up highly, after all, from what reports said... Shinigami were involved and most of, if not all the work was done by one of their own Konoha FBI members.

Homura remained silent, face emotionless as ever, not wanting to reveal his thoughts. Beside him, someone shifted and cleared their throat. "Excuse me," Koharu exclaimed, her eyes glinting but otherwise she wore an impassive mask. Everyone turned to face her, eyes alight with interest and infinite respect; she was one of their eldest and most reputable agents. "We know how risky it is," she said, "So why not send in covert agents? We know there are some talentless slobs working for us, so why not send them in to take a look at what's occurring in our scientists labs way out in Japan? That way, we get rid of some useless agents and also gain new information... If they don't die, that is," she added the last part with a small, partially sadistic smirk, and the council chuckled slightly.

Danzo smiled as he moved his papers out of the way, looking at Koharu before replying. "It sounds like a good idea, before you carry on the idea... I made some calls as to these Shinigami, one of their Captains will be here to discuss things with us regarding the last month... and Koharu, you were saying?"

The elderly council member nodded curtly, folding her hands on the table before her and levelling Danzo with a manipulative look. "Well," she began, clearing her throat calmly. "We all know of Namikaze Minato's and Uzumaki Kushina's son, Uzumaki Naruto..." Upon hearing those names, an uproar arose within the council, whispers of that dreaded name and the tragic events that had happened nearly twenty two years ago.

Danzo smirked, he saw the reactions of all the people around him and they were either interested, or worried. They all knew just what that name meant to them. There was a small moment of silence on his part before he spoke. "What of the Carrier? Are you thinking of sending him on a mission?" he asked casually, that smile not leaving his face. He was already liking the idea of using the infamous carrier of the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, almost too much.

Koharu didn't chuckle despite the amusement she felt inwardly; she knew not to show emotion. "Yes, actually," she said, "He isn't a talented agent; he almost didn't qualify to become such, and as such we're highly dubious of any future promotions and, in conclusion, he is a useless operative to us. We have a criminal organisation after him, causing us immense trouble... If we got rid of him, we'd be free..." Here, lips twitched in an almost-smirk. "Also, the laboratory we wish to send him to is on the boder of where we last tracked Akatsuki spies to... It's a perfect way to gain information... and to get rid of this little pest."

Danzo leaned forward. He knew there wasn't much of Akatsuki left since Pain had disappeared. "Works nicely. What do you know of this lab?" he asked leisurely, folding his arms and staring into all the members' eyes, not missing a single one. He was more interested in where he was sending Naruto to.

Homura, realising what his former FBI operative teammate was getting onto, leant forward and answered for her, "You recall the case we had many years ago, of course?" he questioned, but gave no time to answer. "Animal testing, use of chemical substances that cause extreme side effects... We have reason to believe that lab is now currently being utilised... It's possible, if DNA or any old plans are dug up, our future may be destroyed, Danzo-sama..."

"Sounds interesting," Danzo replied. He heard about the labs before as well, but he had never been able to gain substancial enough information to actually send special agents in. If he sent good agents in or if he sent untrained ones in, either way it wouldn't look too good if he sent government spies to their deaths, and for suspicious reasons. "What else do you know, I heard some former assassin is prominent there."

Flicking through files, Homura opened his mouth to respond once more, but was then cut off by another voice interjecting with a substancial amount of information. "Juli. Ex-assassin. Trained at a military boot camp here in England. Transferred to China where she was the vice-captain of an assassination, and had to take control when the captain was killed by Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame. Has had many successful missions, but..." Here, the woman trailed off, obsidian eyes meeting Danzo's fearlessly as she relented information. "She just suddenly quit. Young, about to have a big promotion, she just... disappeard." Shuffling through papers, she then said promptly, "Apparently, she took up various careers in the paths of science and medicine." She cocked her head. "I do believe we have a lead to this woman as well, sir."

"Who do we have that can give us information on her?" he asked calmly, taking a sip of the orange juice that was on his table as he glanced about with his main eye. "So she's gone off the radar, eh? Is there anything she's majored in? Physics, Biology? Name them, now," Danzo ordered for the information on the young assassin, wanting to have knowledge of everything about her. "It's not like that Soifon... She was a real enigma..." he carried on while flicking through photos, brows knotted together in thought but otherwise cool and collected.

The nameless woman hummed in response, scanning her page. "Majored in Biology. Passed Biology, Chemistry and Physics all with A to A* grades. Took all three for A-Levels and, again, received A to A* grades. File mentions she also knows Chinese, Japanese, English and German, not to mention various Asian fighting sports," she recited, and then her gaze flickered to Danzo.

Danzo looked at the file as he came to the table himself and looked at the folder. "Juli... German ancestry by her name and appearance... explains that reason she knows German... she knows her stuff very well. Dangerous threat... You said you were thinking of sending Uzumaki?" he enquired calmly after mentioning his notes, but it souned more like a statement than a question.

Homura and Koharu exchanged a sly glance, and everyone's stares returned to them. They nodded in unison and Homura muttered, "At first, we thought it risky to use Uzumaki on missions. We increased his work load here, doing very basic missions but as most of Akatsuki have been wiped out and have become less of a threat, we may as well dispose of him properly." He smirked darkly, a shadow looming over his eyes. "He's not important, and he doesn't have a family. No one will miss him, and we can easily wipe his name off of government files."

"Easy work. Are you giving him a partner or is it a solo job?" He asked calmly asked, looking at Juli's photo more in intricate detail, photographic memory recording every insignificant detail.

The mature council member shrugged uncaringly. "It would look suspicious if he were sent alone," he admitted, irked. "Although there is a part time agent who hasn't shown much potential... What's his name, Komura?" he mused aloud.

"Kurosaki Ichigo," the woman beside him supplied. "Same age as Uzumaki Naruto, and the same rank. It's perfect."

"Not to mention," Homura added, "Kurosaki seems to have had a previous connection with Soifon."

Danzo glared at Komura, the mere mention of Soifon's name ensured success. "He knows about that incident too... those two will do nicely" He said with a smile, "So how long before we send the two similar agents?"

The old teammates shared a victorious and vicious smirk. "Right away."

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**Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.  
****NARUTO belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.**

**There will be references in this story to '_Unforgiven_', which is linked to this story. It's not exactly a prequel, but it will give you a more in-depth understanding of the relationships between everyone in this story, so we _should_ have that up soon once both authors have everything sorted out. Both of us are busy and have some important issues going on, but we promise to have our stories sorted out soon enough. Currently discussing ice hockey matches as this is written... XD**

**Reviews are appreciated!**

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	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 1: JULI'S LABORATORY, JAPAN, EARLY MORNING.**

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**_All the things you waste,  
all the things you change._**

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A bike roared into the parkway, 8am the clocks read on the nearest clock to the parked motorcycle. The sight of long brown hair came from the back of the helmet as the young female rider went towards the door and unlocked it. The biker locked the door behind her as she entered, the heels of her boots clicking on the tiled floor as she walked towards a room marked "_Room 50_". She took a moment to unlock the door as she entered the room, slowly walking towards the restrained subject she took off her own helmet and tied her hair back in a ponytail swiftly.

As she took a moment, Juli knelt down and took off the headphones and visor from the subject's face. Taking a moment to whisper. "Good morning, Sakura. Did you enjoy your treatment?" she whispered calmly, gently stroking her face to move the hair from her eyes from overnight.

Bright jade eyes flickered open, blinked a couple of times, and then brightened more, and pink lips turned upwards in a smile. "Lady Juli," she greeted, content. "I'm a little tired, but nothing too out of the ordinary." Here she blushed a delicate shade of pink. "I missed you though."

Juli smiled gently before releasing the straps on Sakura straitjacket. "I've missed you just as much, and it seems you've adjusted well to your new therapy as well, something more relaxing for you, figured you'd like it" she said with a smile, as she took off her motorcycle jacket to show her more slender figure under it, with a black turtleneck shown as she offered her jacket to Sakura.

The younger woman smiled at the kind gesture and thanked her gratefully, sinking into the pristine jacket as she watched Juli start the day. "Will Soifon be here today?" she enquired thoughtfully.

Juli smiled as she saw her co-worker put her jacket on, and replied a moment later. "She'll be here around lunchtime, she has to sort a few things before arriving today," the reply came gently, as the two made their way towards Juli's office. Upon arrival, Juli reached for her glasses and labcoat, while at the same time she handed Sakura a t-shirt and her own labcoat.

"Your name tag's on the table, like you asked before I restrained you last night," Juli said softly, "I've been getting worried as well... Are your dreams still being haunted by the killings of the Akatsuki when you and Soifon met?" she asked quietly. She knew it had troubled Sakura ever since the incident happened a month prior.

Sakura jerked slightly in response to that, and she swallowed thickly before nodding curtly. "Yes," she answered, surprising even herself with her calm tone. She supposed it was from when she used to diagnose patients with fatal diseases and wounds; knowing there was nothing she could do, and telling them they had a certain amount of time before they would die. Closing her eyes briefly, she whispered, "What Soifon did for me... helped me. I became stronger, mentally, emotionally and physically." Her eyes opened swiftly, tears swimming in them but not spilling over. "But, despite that, I remember killing mercilessly, and I-I'm just scared that I'll turn out like... like..." She lowered her head, the unspoken name lingering in the air between them. '_Sasuke..._'

Juli bit her upper lip softly before placing her hand on Sakura's shoulder. "It's PTSD, it's bound to happen... I know Soifon went about it differently to my methods, but understand you'll never be like him..." she said quietly, she knew speaking of Sasuke was something of a taboo within the three co-workers.

"If anything Sakura, you have what he doesn't... true friends, and a true person to serve where has neither," she carried on before kissing Sakura on her cheek. "You gave yourself up, but you became a much better person in all the ways imaginable," she said to finish as she turned to switch on her computer whilst putting on her name tag on the right hand side of her labcoat.

The pink-haired girl nodded slowly, a small smile lighting up her face. "Thank you, Lady Juli," she murmured softly, before going to check her newest medical charts.

Juli looked over the received e-mails, all the usual for her medical work. Reading through them she asked Sakura calmly, "Just wondering, you're still content by testing the mind control programs I've written, right?"

Sakura hummed in response, ticking something off on one of her charts before giving the brunette a proper answer. Turning, she smiled slightly, and she said, "Yeah. I like being useful anyway." She hesitated before saying, "Lady Juli...?"

Juli turned away from her monitor in order to glace at Sakura, just after reading an e-mail. "What is it, Sakura?" she asked calmly, worried about Sakura's hesitation.

The girl flushed slightly, smiling shyly and nervously as she bit her lip before plucking up the courage and murmuring quietly, "I was just thinking about..." Then she cut off abruptly and shook her head, smiling. "No, don't worry," and departed from the room with a bow, scanning her charts as she left.

Juli smiled as she watched Sakura leave the room as usual in her obedient way, she was pleased that she served with enjoyment and that her work in medical and psychological research was coming ideally for her. "Thinking of me..." Juli said with a smile on her face as she pushed up her glasses, shortly afterwards going to unlock the door for the day's work with a thought. "Wonder who'll be in today," she wondered to herself, humming a nameless tune, before raising her mature brown eyes when there was a curt knock at the door. "Come on in, it's open," she called.

An elderly couple entered the medical centre, faces of stone, before small smile crept up onto their faces when they saw the doctor. "Is this too much trouble? We don't have an appointment..." the woman began apologetically, a small smile on her wrinkled lips.

Juli glanced at the elderly couple warily. Her mind told her that it was unusual first thing in the morning, but didn't turn down the couple. She never turned down potential patients. "Oh, yeah, it's no problem. It's only early morning but in future you'll have to call beforehand you see..." Juli replied before gesturing in a friendly way towards a room to discuss as she entered the room with the couple. "So, if I could take your names down before we begin?" Juli asked professionally as she got out the forms to fill in, popping out a pen. "It's standard procedure here, regardless of who you see I'm afraid, I'm Dr. Juli, I run the practice here as well," she gestured as she offered her hand to the couple.

The old couple nodded graciously with icily polite smiles, their eyes closed kindly, but they did not take her hand. "Family name is Kurosawa, my name is Hoshi, and my wife is Rumiko," he said easily, patting his wife's hand with much reluctance.

Juli withdrew her outstretched arm, understanding the couples wishes, another note of suspcion that she hid perfectly from her years as an assassin. "Okay... Mr. Hoshi Kurosawa, and Mrs. Rumiko Kurosawa..." she said as she wrote out the named on the forms and handed them to the couple to fill in. "Just so we have you on records in the case of repeat prescriptions," Juli explained in a polite way.

"If you don't mind me asking, Mr. and Mrs. Kurosawa... what seems to be the problem with either of you?" she carried on in a professional way as she gave pens to the two.

"It's not pleasant," Rumiko said softly with a small sigh, taking charge of the conversation. "We used to work in the field of science, and our old jobs gave way to lots of radiation. We are aware that it is possible to retain radiation poisoning and possibly cancer from it, and my husband and I have been coughing a lot recently, so we thought we'd better be safe than sorry," she explained.

Juli nodded and understood the situation clearly. "I understand, overseas works in nuclear areas can and possibly will do that to anyone that works there... I won't be able to get you checked out right now, but maybe perhaps I can have you booked in for this time next week?" Juli explained and asked calmly, since she couldn't do tests same day, she knew she had to be careful since a week in hand may be ideal for the couple to get their dates sorted. "At the most, I can get you checked within four to five days but usually it's a week within patients that ask for these kinds of checks."

"The earliest possible time you have would be best," Hoshi interjected abruptly, eyes flickering behind his glasses to the stairway, swearing he had seen a brief flash of pink. '_Must be my imagination_,' he thought, but after years in the FBI, he questioned, "Does anyone else work here, Dr. Juli?" he asked levelly, eyes calculating.

"Is five days time fine with you both?" she asked calmly before answering the second question, pushing up her glasses before answering after quickly seeing Sakura pass by the stairs. "Yes, two others work here with me." she answered calmly. "Just out of curiosity, why do you ask?"

"Five days shall be fine," the old man muttered, glancing back at the stairs before fixing his gaze on Juli. "It's nothing," he replied. "I just used to work in business and you know of all the Acts put in place to discourage discrimination. I'm simply too transfixed on my old work," he said with a dry chuckle.

"We're both professional in our own rights," Juli replied with a chuckle, before walking towards the door leading the elderly couple towards the reception. "Well, if you come back within 5 days either I, or any of the other two doctors here will get you checked up," she carried on, "I hope you'll both be well before coming back."

Both nodded in perfect sync. "Many thanks, Dr. Juli," Rumiko said, standing with her husband as they walked towards the door. "It's been nice meeting you." They both glanced back at her meaningfully for a moment before departing and closing the door.

"Until then," Juli said with a nod and smile as she went to process the details of her two patients, she called out to Sakura about 5 minutes later. "Sakura, could you take a look at these records and and log them for 5 days time?" she called out, in a semi-authorative manner partial to her job and her relationship with Sakura.

Sakura jogged up to her, shaking her bangs out of her eyes and taking the notes. "Yeah, I can do that," she said, "I'll get on it right away." She offered the brunette a smile before blowing her hair out of her eyes. "I've got to cut it again soon..." she mumbled thoughtfully.

"You'd suit a short fringe with long hair," Juli replied with a chuckle before asking Sakura some more in-depth questions. "Tell me, do you know anything of any nuclear science areas or anything of the sort around here?" Juli asked in a concerned tone, as to bring her suspicions of the couple.

She frowned, thinking hard for a moment before shaking her head slowly. "Not since the early 1900s," she replied slowly, frowning in confusion at the question. "That was closed down shortly after the recession in America though, since the fundings consisted mostly from there." She tilted her head, blinking. "Why do you ask?"

Juli looked into Sakura's eyes, then the documents. "Something about the couple... I never recalled anything like that either, maybe overseas..." she said quietly as she pushed up her glasses.

Sakura cocked her head to the other side now. "You used to work for the FBI, didn't you, Lady Juli?" she questioned. "Couldn't you research them? Look up their names and find out about them."

Juli nodded her head before replying, "That's right, I did a bit of work there before my kidnapping and becoming an assassin... I should be able to do some work on them..." she replied calmly before inserting the details of the patients with swift movements. "The old man had like an eye patch, like a massive bandage covering his eye," Juli mentioned, thinking back on the appearance.

The qualified nurse suddenly froze completely, jade eyes wide, breath hitching, before whirling around, clutching her clipboard tightly, "What did you say?" she gasped.

Juli saw Sakura's reaction and calmly responded with the description in a concerned tone, "Yes, the guy looked about seventy or so, black hair with bandages all around his forehead and right eye... Something told me that they were suspicious because it's first thing in the morning... Usually those that work in radioactivity will check on their health... bit late in life for someone like them..."

"L-Lady Juli," Sakura stammered, swallowing. "He sounds like a member of the government in England... I previously worked with people there, Uzumaki Naruto being one of them, and met the higher ups on occasion because of Tsunade-sama's teachings... I believe his name is... Danzo?" She frowned, biting her lip. "I recall him wanting to 'get rid' of Naruto, not to mention the trauma he put Sai through..." There was a haunted look in her eyes and Juli didn't like it one bit.

"Hmm... looks like some big-shots are interested in us then... we'll play along to their facade, but we'll be careful... I'll have to change your therapy to prepare for battle if it comes to it for the next 5 days if that's fine?" she asked in a concerned and worried tone, she knew things were getting real serious if councillors like those were getting involved. "I heard of that Danzo guy too... dangerous guy..."

Sakura looked worried, but she nodded with a small smile. "I trust you, Lady Juli," she replied, leaning up to peck the woman's cheek before humming when she got a page from a patient. "Mind if I go? I'm needed by Kuchiki-chan."

Juli leant forward to receive her kiss, before sighing in a joking manner about the page. "No problem. Let Rukia know we may have some problems, and I'll tell Soifon myself later," she said with a smile before leaning in to give Sakura a chate kiss, lingering just a moment longer than necessary, and then pulled back, lips quirked in a soft smile.

Sakura blushed slightly again but nodded enthusiastically, giving Juli a cheeky salute before dashing up to Rukia's room, but was unable to banish the memories of the dark night...

'_There was so much blood..._'

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**_Bleach_ belongs to Tite Kubo.  
_NARUTO_ belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.**

**All right, first order of business, Juli addresses people with English titles, i.e. Mr, Mrs, Miss, and Ms, instead of utilising Japanese sufixes as she is of European ancestry, bearing in mind she's German. It's not because we effed up or something, okay? XD Eh, you can think that if you want though, we don't really care. Gosan is too happy to care because the Islanders are winning! _YEEES_. Aside from that, we both have school and college respectively tomorrow, which is really freaking annoying, but we'll live. Hopefully.**

**Anyway, in the next chapter we'll be introducing two FBI agents. Guess who? XD Have fun waiting for the next installment.**

**Please _review_!**


	3. Chapter 3

_**Hot and cold,  
**__**bought and sold.  
**__**A heart as hard as gold.  
**__**Yeah! Are you satisfied?**_

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**KONOHA, 2PM**

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The noise in the busy village slowly toned down as the hustle and bustle disippated as people's lunch breaks ended and they headed back to work and, finally, some peace for the afternoon came by before those same people would come back to the stores on their way home from work. Amongst the crowds, a familiar sight was seen at the Ichiraku Ramen, a young man with blond hair drinking a can of coke to wash down his meal upon arriving in the town. Crumpling his can, he tossed it in the garbage bin beside him and heaved a heavy sigh before finishing his ramen and slamming the money on the table. He didn't stand up to leave.

"Naruto?" a kind voice asked, concern in their tone.

The addressed blond looked up at her and smiled slightly. "Yeah, Ayame?" he responded, and the brunette's brow furrowed. She wasn't used to how solemn he had grown as he had grown older.

"Looks like you've been troubled since the whole Akatsuki Incident last month... Since then, the Elders set up that... _thing_... and you're in..." Her face screwed up slightly. She was perplexed; the regular townsfolk not of shinobi occupation were not informed of the goings-on in the higher-up place of work. Shaking off her confusion, she continued, "But I know you well." She scoled. "It's that guy that was with you when it happened, wasn't it?" Ayame asked in the same kind and concerned tone, and yet firm and demanding as she was aware that the blond often refused to speak of things that troubled him, or simply brushed it off. She _also_ knew that things had changed a lot in Naruto ever since the incident involving soul society happened a month prior.

The boy's eyes darkened slightly before he feigned a bright smile. It may not have been real, but it was still bright enough to rival the sun, but Ayame saw the conflicted emotions swirling in those azure orbs, but she didn't comment. Naruto didn't like pity. "Don't worry about me, Ayame," he said in a surprisingly soft tone, "I can take care of myself."

"Alright, but don't get into any trouble out there," came Ayame's reply with a hesitant smile, and she quietly handed the change to him. Naruto thanked her, but truthfully, his mind had been a storm since the whole incident happened, from seeing Sakura recover from her mind control ordeal, to her then disappearing but still remaining in contact (albeit rarely due to both of their demanding occupations), and then Ichigo leaving with Urahara and Yoruichi a week or so after what happened. He knew they had to protect the spirit world, but he couldn't help but feel slightly bitter that Ichigo had left without saying goodbye. Urahara and Yoruichi had both bade him a farewell, but the carrot-top hadn't even left a note or anything. The blond shook his head. '_Don't be selfish_,' he berated himself, clenching his fists, '_He's got people to protect, just like you. Get over yourself!_' and then shook his head hastily as if to dismiss these pessimistic thoughts.

As Naruto walked through the streets, he was having the occasional flashback of the times he and Ichigo were together for that short period, bitter he was, but at the least it'd be nice to see him again at some point if something was to come up again. However, he was quite dubious of that. The guy had gone back to his own life, to protect his family and friends, whilst Naruto had departed from Konoha not long after Ichigo had left. Sakura had gone, and he just felt so empty. Sasuke had abandoned them, Sakura left for fulfil her dreams and, although he was happy for her, he hated being so alone in a place that withheld so many memories.

Sighing ruefully, the Jinchuuriki entereed a convenience store to pick up another drink as he wandered the streets aimlessly, just waiting for the next boring as hell mission from the Elder Council. Upon entering, he heard the shopkeep talking with someone as he looked through the magazine rack. "Hey, did I see you here before?" the shopkeep asked curiously to the then unknown customer.

"Yeah, I was here about a month ago..." The young man replied as he paid his money. The voice sounded all too familiar for Naruto, and he felt a strange sensation flow through him, a mixture of betrayal and anger, but also relief and happiness. "Here's your change... So, what's bought you here this time? One of your friends going mad again?"

"Nah, classified stuff. You know what those council members are like... Remind me of a guy in the Gotei... Kuchiki, he's called..." he muttered in a bored monotone. "Thanks for the drink," he said, "I'll be around a while." Giving a polite nod to the man behind the counter, the redhead grabbed his item and went to depart from the shop and, upon noticing that, Naruto threw the magazine back in the rack and quickly followed the leaving customer. It irked him, knowing full well whose voice that was. When he exited from the shop, he dashed up to Ichigo and slammed him into the wall behind the newsagents. "What the _fuck_?" he hissed, rage blazing in his eyes.

Ichigo felt the slam into the wall thrown into. He looked quickly pissed before realising it was Naruto. "Jeez, I'm only back here twenty minutes and I'm getting thrown into walls..." His eyes widened in astonishment. "W-wait a second! Naruto?" Ichigo nearly shouted as he felt the shinobi's presence.

The blond boy's eyes narrowed and he dug his fingers into Ichigo's shoulders before pulling away, glaring at the guy. "You didn't say goodbye," he muttered darkly, blunt and straight to the point as usual. He took a step back and folded his arms tightly, almost hugging himself.

Ichigo stepped back a bit before retorting, was certainly the last thing he expected when arriving. "Considering all the noise we made, how would you feel about it?" he asked in his own blunt way, "You sent that Pain packing and we just about survived that damn rocket blast from Soifon... considering my circumstances, yeah..." Noticing how the blond was still sulking, he sighed, rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, and said, "And I'm sorry. I should've said bye."

Naruto obviously wasn't expecting an apology, at least not that easily. People just didn't tend to say sorry to the container. Unfolding his arms, he shrugged awkwardly and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Well," he mumbled uncomfortably, cheeks tinged pink. "You _could_ 'a said g'bye or something..."

Ichigo straightened out his shirt before replying again, the two had gone through a closer than you think friendship in the few weeks they knew each other and it came. "I know, by the time I got back to the Shoten I had Hat'n'Clogs ask me why I didn't... I didn't explain to him because of what we have... they're asking for you back at the shop too." He felt kind of relieved when Naruto's previously pouting face brightened into his sunny smile. He swiftly off the weird fluttering sensation. "Though I bet you're wondering why I'm here, right?" Ichigo asked in the almost typical straightforward way of his.

The ramen-lover snorted in an attempt to break the heavy atmosphere, although he was secretly jovial over the fact that people had missed him. "Yeah, I kinda am." He raised his brows. "I mean, you only came to Konoha on business, so I guess this is what this is about, right?" he surmised, cocking his head.

Ichigo smiled in that surefire, cocksure way of his before signalling to him to walk with him to the Council Offices. "Yeah... your friends higher up made some calls to me, they said something of a job for you and I'm your partner, since the both of us seem to have some sort of interconnection with this job."

Naruto froze for a second, stopping dead in his tracks as he stared wide-eyed at his comrade. "Y-ya... What did you say? You serious?" he asked, stunned. '_What the hell? Why would a shinigami and a shinobi be paired up? This ain't been done before, I swear... This is kinda weird..._'

Ichigo snorted, taking his time to reply, "Yeah, your buddies said it's pretty in-depth, so I'm here to see what they want us for... thinking back to the Akatsuki incident... I'd say this is pretty big for two guys like us who were directly in it."

The shorter boy's brow furrowed and he frowned at the pavement in thought as he resumed walking beside his second-time partner. "Yeah," he agreed slowly, still perplexed. "But... don't'cha find it kinda... strange... that they'd be doin' this?"

"Stumps me." He shrugged. "We're gonna find out now ain't we?" Ichigo replied with a little grin as the two walked into the building. Naruto couldn't help but grin back brightly. He did it instinctively whenever his friends were happy. When Ichigo looked away, his smile slipped off, and a blank mask replaced it. '_I hate these guys_,' he thought as they entered the building.

Ichigo's thoughts ran the same, albeit less positive and more irritable. '_These douches had better have a good reason for this. I'm taking out hollows in the metric fuckton scale and some top-secret bull comes up... Seeing Naruto makes up for this, but they'd better explain everything_.'

The automatic doors zipped open as they approached, and they walked up to the reception desk. The woman glanced up from whatever she was writing, and after mutting something into her headset, she returned her gaze to the two men's. "They're waiting for you upstairs," she said quietly and she gestured towards the lift and pointed up as the office was on the top floor, and then carried on with her dull work. Each muttering a thanks that was practically inaudible to the woman (despite Naruto's bright smile and virbant, "Thanks a lot, ma'am!"), they dashed over to the lift, receiving some agitated glares and scowls from the occupants of said lift as they had caught the doors as they had been closing. When another man entered on the second floor, it was quite squashed, and Ichigo and Naruto, who had already been standing next to each other, were pushed further together and now Naruto's face was practically buried in Ichigo's shoulder. Both tried to ignore the heat flaring up to their cheeks, although Ichigo was more annoyed at the crowded lift whilst the blond was just flustered.

* * *

Any previous chatter died down, lingering quietly as the people exchanged rude whispers about the two people who had entered the room, particularly the blond occupant. Tightening his fists slightly, Naruto said quietly, "We're here," as a way of introduction, managing to keep up his calm facade, although he knew Danzo would have noticed any movements, including his tense shoulders and fists.

Danzo sure noticed it, but shrugged it off, he knew it was normal for Naruto to react that way; he was the container of a demon. "Alright everyone, let's keep it quiet here... now I'm glad you two could make it, Koharu will be handing you the details about this." he said coldly, gazing deep into both the Shinigami and the carriers eyes.

Ichigo just quirked a brow challengingly in response and, feeling Naruto's trembling fists against his arms, glared at the man before he reluctantly broke the gaze to turn towards the elderly members inquisitively but in annoyance. '_This had better be good..._'

Koharu stood up with the file in hand before speaking. "Can you two take a seat as I explain the mission?" she asked quickly, waiting for them to do so before she continued. "There's a lot of suspicious activity going on in a lab in Japan, it's also doubling as a doctor's practice, and the person running it is a world renowned assassin, no more than your age and notable for her work both in medical, psychological and assassination techniques. We want you two to investigate her lab, practice and activity," she explained in a calm, yet cold and bitter way. "Danzo and I went there earlier on today to check the situation before sending you two out," she said with a slight smile on her face, thankful that the mission was a success, although she knew the power plant story was risky. They really needed more preperation next time or they could be found out.

"Wait a second," Ichigo growled, leaning forward and placing his elbows on the table. "Who're we checking out? You can't just send us off without more information," he muttered in aggravation.

"Patience... Kurosaki..." Danzo coldly said in two words as Koharu put the file in front of him with the details.

The fiery orange-haired boy just glowered angrily at him, grabbing the manila folder and pulling out the information. "Juli..." he read aloud. "Never heard of her." He frowned.

"Course you wouldn't have, she's your age and regarded as an assassin _equal_ to your friend in the Gotei 13," Danzo called out, as so taunting Ichigo's inability to recognise notable figures or know of anything of the sort. Naruto flinched slightly at the mention of the person in question, even if Danzo hadn't named who it was.

Ichigo threw the man another dark glare. He was getting more pissed off by the second. '_Fuck off_,' he wanted to say, but instead he said, "Right," before replaying that statement in his mind again. "Wait," he said, raising his hands. "Hold up. _Equal_?"

"You heard me right, read the file for youself," Danzo said calmly, "I think you'll be surprised to see her exploits and what she's capable of." Naruto looked through the details as Danzo told Ichigo what to do, he was stunned into silence due to the amount of achievements carried out.

Swallowing hard, finding his throat incredibly dry, Naruto managed to say, "Hang on... Why are _we_ carrying out this case? If they're of equal acapabilities, and we're just rookies in this field, so why are _we_ gonna deal with these guys?"

"Because our further looks into her work has linked her to Soifon... and you two had more than a run in with her last month," Koharu said in response, biting her lip in annoyance before letting Danzo carry on, completely ignoring the way Naruto tensed up even further when she referred back to that time, although Ichigo had noticed and frowned worriedly. '_Hold on, Naruto. We'll be outta this shit hole soon..._'

"Besides," the man drawled, a haughty smirk appearing on his dry lips, "There's someone you know there, Uzumaki..." Naruto stilled and raised his eyes to stare into Danzo's, the the elder man's smirk grew when he saw the recognisation and horror flashing in those eyes. '_He reveals his emotions so easily. It makes this so easy..._' "Haruno Sakura, I believe her name is?" he asked, but it sounded more like a statement. "I've been informed she's being used as an experiment as well as working for Juli, alongside one Soifon..."

Ichigo looked up the moment the old man finished his statement, nearly sounding like he was shouting but more in a manner of calling out. "You said what? We dealt with this last month, what would an assassin like her want Sakura for? She's got enough with Soifon as a partner as it is," he called out in a tone that carried agitation and curious thought to it. Danzo was simply smiling in his mind, he knew he got the right people for the right mission.

Naruto's clenched fists tightened further, and he cold feel his nails growing sharper and digging into his flesh and memories flashed through his mind, and he gritted his teeth, trying hard not to blurt anything out that he'd regret. "Who are you to question us?" Homura asked calmly, eyes glinting behind his glasses. "We're the ones in charge here."

"Fine... we'll carry out the job since this is connected with us..." Ichigo bitterly said, much to Danzo's enjoyment. "When do you send us out to Japan to check this Juli out?"

The council members exchanged smirks, save for one black-haired woman who had obtained the information on Juli during the last meeting, who was staring meaningfully at the two newbie agents. "Right away."

**

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**This was a_ bitch_ to edit, seriously... I (Gosan) edited it once before and it decided not to work when I clicked "save." Ugh, whatever. ¬.¬; I'll copy/paste onto WordPad from now on in case it fucks up on me again. Sorry for the wait!**

**Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.  
NARUTO belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.**


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